When voters select the nation's next president in just two months, they'll face a stark contrast when they choose between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama.

Remember back in 2000, when Ralph Nadar said he was running for president because the major party candidates were interchangeable? "Tweedledum and Tweedledee," he called George W. Bush and Al Gore. We didn't believe him at the time, and we strongly suspect that anyone who was inclined toward his position was quickly disabused of the notion soon after the end of the disputed election. And we'd be willing to bet that no reasonable and intelligent person would suggest that the candidates this time around are cut from the same cloth, are beholden to the same special interests, are Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

On Nov. 4, the citizens will choose a new president. The end of the endless campaign is upon us.

The conventional wisdom holds that most Americans don't begin to really tune into the electoral process until fairly late in the game. But this year and this campaign have been anything but typical. The citizenry, it would seem, has been tuned in for some time now.

With the conclusion of the Republican National Convention last night, the race is on for real. The party nominees are official and no longer presumptive. And the debates are looming.

In a very odd way, it is difficult to consider that this campaign will actually conclude, that the nation will select a new president on Nov. 4. But end it will, and the next president will be handed the keys to the Oval Office on Jan. 20.

McCain and his newcomer running mate, Sarah Palin, the first-term governor of Alaska, square off against Obama and his No 2, Joe Biden, a U.S. Senator from Delaware who was first elected 36 years ago.

The campaigns seek differing paths on just about every issue under the sun - including the sun.